A Commanders mash potato slip up
by hoppinghamster
Summary: Chakotay gets into a mash potato mess and Kathryn is not impressed...
1. Chapter 1

"Oh no commander! Don't you 'Kathryn' me! Don't you dare try and sugar coat this!" her hand's where on her hips. Her anger was lacing her voice. Her cheeks were flushed, her auburn hair was flying which way it pleased, and even when she ran her tiny hand through it, it would not tame down. In short Voyager's captain was not happy.

"Sorry." The ships first officer offered timidly as he tugged at his ear with his hand for he knew an angry Captain Janeway was bad enough but upsetting an angry Captain Janeway meant asking to be thrown out an airlock.

"Oh you're sorry!" her hands went up in the air "He's sorry!" Kathryn Janeway spat talking to nobody in particular as they were the only two in the ready room as she flopped back down in the chair behind her desk. "Is that supposed to mean something to me?" her eyebrow raised, a secret challenge as she met his eyes.

Chakotay decided to go in from the innocent defence angel. "It was a mistake, it could have happened to anyone." He was pleading with her to see reason now, this was not good.

"Well it was _your_mistake!" Kathryn insisted folding her arms and scowling at her first officer in pretend annoyance.

"Ok so we have firmly established that it was not your fault." Chakotay reminded her knowing exactly what her issue was, '_just as long as she is not to blame'_ Chakotay thought to himself with a slight smile creeping into the corner of his lips.

"Have you made sure my crew _knows_ this fact?" she spat back at him in a proud self-righteous tone of voice.

"Kath- Captain they know that anyway." He told her coolly watching her from where he stood somewhere between the door and her desk. He had been slowly backing away towards the door. Best not get too close he had decided.

Nonchalantly she looked away from him waving him off with her hand saying, "Fine then get out."

"Captain" he said coolly almost hurt.

"Dismissed Commander, go back onto my bride and slouch around stating the obvious or take the delta flyer out for a crash or whatever it is you do around here." She told him in a slightly sarcastic tone with a smile creeping to her own lips.

It was then that Kathryn noticed that Chakotay's small smile fell and hurt flashed into his eyes but only for a second before his smile was back and his eyes were neutral, "right, well if that's how it is."

"It is," she said in a slightly cool voice.

"I see," he replied just as coolly.

"Oh come on Chakotay" she said with a real grin as she looked up at him, realising he was not returning her smile she sighed and said "oh all right I suppose you have only crashed a few of my shuttles this week and not the Delta Flyer." It was a joke to lighten the mood. Sadly her first officer didn't seem to feel the same as her.

Tension was mounting across Chakotay's face as he growled in a very low whisper "for such a little woman your very infuriating you know."

"Commander that's insubordination" she smiled at him in her usual jovial tone.

"I know," he growled back.

Rolling her eyes and standing to move towards him she told him "well there's no need to get personal because _you_messed up." Returning to their original conversation.

"You got personal first" he told her and without waiting for a reply he turned from her and strode out of her ready room on to her bridge.

With a snort Kathryn shook her head and hissed under her breath "he'll be back" to herself as he picked up the PADD containing the report on the mornings incident involving the commander and a whole lot of mash potato….


	2. Chapter 2

**One of my older neglected stories…. I wrote this years ago…. Uploaded the first chapter and never got to the rest…. I have just found this hiding in my laptop…. Time to upload… Enjoy.**

Captain Janeway had finished her shift thirty minutes ago but somehow had not managed to convince herself to actually leave the ready room. She felt safe in the office; at least there she had purpose and a reason to be. Though she would never admit it; in her personal life she felt hollow and empty. It's not as if she didn't get any fun, because she did, her regular girls night's with Sam, B'Elanna and Susan Nicoletti were always fun, thought she knew since B'Elanna had insisted she join the tree of them things were not quite the same during those evenings. A girl's night in with your captain was not the same as a girl's night in without her, no matter what her half-Klingon chief engineer insisted.

Sam had been dating Joe Carry now for many months and Aunt Kath was one of Naomi's favourites for babysitting. Though the innocent child had not hesitated you tell the lonely captain how her mother had spent over an hour each time she came making sure their quarters were tidy and 'within regulations' before she came each time.

Neilex always saved her a special 'captains' dinner and gave her special attention as the captain and Seven never really opened up to her the way she did with the others. "You can't be friends with your captain" had been the slender blondes answer upon further questioning from Kathryn.

Kathryn was in short fed up with trying to have a personal life on this ship, the only person who seemed to accept she was anything but the captain was her dashing first officer and there he was asking for the one kind of relationship she couldn't give him, Not that she didn't want to.

That's where this had all began, Chakotay and his damned mash potato. The dam stuff would be exploding out the air vents for weeks. Stupid fool, she mused to herself, and he had the cheek to claim she was a poor cook! Hell she didn't even like mash potato! Nor did he as it happened.

Captain Janeway had just let her train of thought wonder back to his tanned skin, his dark eyes and the lines of his tattoo over his left eye. Oh damn, she thought to herself, this has to stop, standing up she straitened her uniform. Ran her hands through her hair and headed out of her office. This called for a long bath, lots of bubbles and a good book to read…

Deciding it best to leave the ready room tough the corridor and not the bridge she stepped out of the door's and made her way to the turbo-lift when, hello… she walked into something large and firm. Looking up she saw those dark eyes and the lines of the tattoo. Damn those dimples got her every time…. Even if she was annoyed with him over the business with the mash potato….


	3. Chapter 3

"Going somewhere?" he teased. His dimples were out in full force. Kathryn looked around the deserted corridor and folded her arms. This corridor leads only to her ready room and her small private bathroom. It was less of a corridor, more of a space between the two. A private space. Her space and now he was in it!

"To my quarters as it happens" she told him with her head held high trying her best to keep an air of command presence to that end she folded her arms and added "commander" with a firm nod for good measure on this matter. 

"That's good" he smiled devilishly. He too folded his arms but leaned sideways against the bulk head to block her path with his grin. 

"Good?" she found herself questioning his meaning. She felt herself suddenly drawn to him - no wait she didn't want this damn it!

"Dinner?" came his question suddenly taking her off guard.

Hands on hips she stared up at him before turning on her heal, moving around him and matching towards to turbo lift saying sharply "excuse me commander" 

"Is that a yes then?" he called after her with those damn dimples. She decided it was safer not to turn around and so simply offered a small huff before slapping the console to open the turbo lift doors a little harder than was needed. 

Chakotay laughter rung out through her ears which only served to anger her further. She was still fuming with him for the mash potato disaster. Besides which Nelix was calling for punishments. She had never really had to punish her first officer before. Not for something so silly. This was annoying the say the least besides which it added more work for her. A head ace was coming on... images of how she would punish that beautiful smooth tanned body crept into her mind. Damn!

Besides the fact when last she saw him he hadn't like what she had said to him. Now he was inviting her to dinner... or maybe he was inviting himself to dinner in her quarters. Right now she didn't care much for him... Only she did. But that was beside the point.

Finally she was in the turbo lift alone and safe. She leaned back on the bulk head and closed her eye. Peace, blissful peace….

"I took the Delta Flyer for a spin." It was him in here! In _her _Turbo lift.

Her eyes shot open, she stood straight, not so tall "you what?!" was all she could muster.

Chakotay smiled, now he had her attention.


End file.
